Thank You, President Obama

I love President Barack Obama. No kidding. I love the guy. Barack Obama is the best community organizer of conservatives since Ronald Reagan.

Not even conservative icon Sarah Palin, had she been elected Vice President, could have put together hundreds of town hall meetings with conservatives turning out and decrying the socialist aspects of the liberal health care bills.

It’s even less likely a President John McCain could have gathered Americans in different cities to conduct anti-big government Tea Party rallies. Who else but President Obama could motivate the huge rally in Washington, D.C. on September 12, where hundreds of thousands declared their intention to take back the nation? Glenn Beck and FreedomWorks couldn’t have done it without the expertise and hard work of the Obama administration.

Conservatives need to take a moment to thank the one guy who could organize a community of conservatives in a mere nine months of work. Thank you, President Obama.

Push Out the Czars

Many lawmakers are upset with the proliferation of policy aides in the Obama administration, people commonly referred to as “czars.” Many of the czars do not face any confirmation process in the Senate and they can’t be forced to testify before Congress. Conservatives see the Obama administration is giving these czars too much power, and we want some Congressional oversight over these unelected bureaucrats.

Congressman Jack Kingson (R-Ga.) has introduced the “Czar Accountability and Reform (CZAR) Act of 2009” to remove the salary of a czar unless that person has been subject to the advice and consent of the Senate. If President Obama has a czar able to tell a Cabinet-level official what to do, this legislation would take away that person’s salary. Congressman Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.) has written a letter to the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee urging hearings.

Sen. David Vitter (R-La.) also plans to act soon. Vitter tells HUMAN EVENTS, “I’m very concerned about restricting that undefined authority of what are essentially political advisory positions and I’m working to introduce an amendment to the Interior Department spending bill in the very near future with that particular goal in mind.” Vitter is joined by Senators Robert C. Byrd (D-W.V.) and Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), who have reservations about the potential for a violation of the separation of powers between Congress and the Executive Branch.

Alexander calls the czars, “an affront to the Constitution” and “anti-democratic.” Alexander pointed out that the proliferation of between 32 or 34 czars is “a poor example of a new era of transparency, which is what was promised to this country.”

Conservative Uniter – Progressive Divider

While millions of Americans rally against the President’s domestic policies, the left is becoming increasingly irritated with the President’s national security policies. As a candidate, Obama characterized the war in Afghanistan as the “good war,” but it appears many in his party now disagree. Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) said, “I don’t think there’s a great deal of support for sending more troops.” According to a recent Rasmussen poll, 61 percent of Democrats favors an immediate withdraw from Afghanistan or establishing a short timeline for withdraw, compared to just 19 percent of Republicans.

If the President follows the recommendations of Gen. Stanley McChrystal, who is rumored to be seeking an increase of anywhere from 14,000 to 40,000 or so troops, he will have to defy his political base. Last week’s request by the White House for the extension of three key provisions in the PATRIOT Act and have further enraged the President’s left flank.

Don’t get the wrong impression about our President’s foreign policy intentions. Just because Obama is angering the left does not mean he’s right by conservatives. Thursday Obama officials told America’s allies in Poland and the Czech Republic that the White House has spiked plans for a long-range missile defense third site in Eastern Europe. This pre-emptive retreat from missile defense — based on supposed and unproven changes in intelligence — will make the Russian government very happy.

Indeed, it appears the White House has traded away the third site for its arms-control agenda. It may jump start negotiations with Moscow on a new Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START). But it’s not a good sign that the Obama Administration is dismantling a deterrent to nuclear missile attack in Eastern Europe before negotiations begin. What will be left to negotiate? Even worse, America has abandoned a missile defense system that not only would have protected Europe, but also the United States, as well.

Conservative Cheers

An “Atta Boy” should be extended to the President’s Press Secretary Robert Gibbs, Democrat National Committee Chairman Howard Dean and loony left-wing commentator Keith Olbermann for helping to unify conservatives against the policies of President Obama. Their constant attacks against conservatives, along with the President’s left-wing policies, are boosting the resurgence of the conservative movement. Without these activities by the left, conservatives might still be disorganized and not have a reason to fight. Thanks again, Mr. President. There’s no way conservatives could have pulled together this quickly without your efforts.